Habits of MindAn Introduction

Agenda• Overview: What do we mean by

Habits of Mind?• Why make it part of teaching?• Discovering the 16 Habits• Reflection & Questions• HoM in the Classroom: Principles• HoM in the Classroom: Activities

“Intellectual dispositions that are skillfully and mindfully employed by characteristically successful people when confronted with problems, the solutions to which are not immediately apparent.”

Definition“Intellectual dispositions that are skillfully and mindfully employed by characteristically successful people when confronted with problems,

“Intellectual dispositions that are skillfully and mindfully employed by characteristically successful people“Intellectual dispositions

Definition Deconstructed

• Ways of thinking• Approaches to problem-solving• Patterns of intelligent behaviors

When confronted by a challenging task, how

do you handle it?• Procrastinate? Or make a plan and get started?• Give up? Or stick to it even if it’s hard and scary?• Try to go it alone? Or ask for help if you need it?• Run with the first idea that comes to you? Or

brainstorm a list of possible options and then select the one you think is best?

With poor Habits of Mind, things turn out differently.

The bus that you take to work has been arriving late for the last few days. Today your boss noticed that you got to work 15 minutes late. Choose the BEST and the WORST ways to solve this problem.

Why integrate HoM?Interdisciplinary & Applicable to:• Academics• Work• Parenting• Community engagement & leadershipDo-able!• Unlike children, adults are

developmentally mature enough to employ all the Habits if they apply themselves

Discover the 16 Habits• Work with a partner• Match the 8 Habits with their Mottos

& Descriptors• Share your solution with your table• Learn about the other 8 Habits from

your table partners• Check your work

Reflection• Which of the 16 Habits of Mind did

you draw on to successfully complete this task?

• Which of the 16 Habits do you see your students already applying well? Which do they need to develop?

A Growth Model• Skill levels, applied differently across

contexts:o Novice/Beginnero Apprenticeo Skilledo Expert

• Develop over the lifespan.We all have room to grow!

Questions?• Which of the 16 Habits would

you like to know more about?

Habits of Mind in the Classroom

Making the Habits Real

How do we teach the Habits?

• Introduce• Identify• Model• Operationalize• Promote self-reflection• Integrate

Introduce the Concepts

• Discuss the habits with students• One or two at a time• Allow learners to describe & identify

the habit in their own language/examples

Identify the Habits• Name them!

o Posters, word wall, etc.• Use the terms

o In feedback, in discussion, etc.• Point out when a habit is displayed

and offer praise/encouragement.

Model the Habits“Teachers design and pose powerful questions so students experience, analyze, and compose powerful questions themselves.”“Teachers laugh at themselves and guarantee that no lesson is successful without finding humor.”(Costa & Kallick, pg. 93)

But remember…• Students will not learn from what

they do not notice. So…• Call explicit attention to your use of

the habits.

“Operationalize”• Make the abstract real and tangible• What does the habit look like, sound

like, feel like when it is employed?• Activity: Y-chart

Y-Chart Instructions• Only positives:“Yes, we see that, hear that, feel that.”• Listening with empathy: “Not interrupting”

is a negative. What actions do we see/hear?

Promote Self-Reflection

Checklists for specific behaviors – completed by learners about their own use of the habits

Integration: Writing Prompts

• Tell about a time when you had to persist through something challenging. What happened? What did it feel like?

• Tell about a time when you came up with a creative new idea. What was the idea? How did you come up with it? How did you feel?

• Claude Levi-Strauss (maker of blue jeans!) once said, “The wise man doesn’t give the right answers, he poses the right questions.” What do you think this means? Why are questions important?

Habits of Mind are Hiding in Your

ClassroomTry the “Mark the Margins” exercise.

What Habits of Mind will students draw on to complete this exercise? How could you make sure students notice their use of those habits?

Once you start seeing Habits of Mind, you can’t stop!

Reflection• Think about your classroom and the

activities you like. What Habits of Mind do these activities foster?

For More Information• http://www.instituteforhabitsofmind.com/

• http://www.habitsofmind.org/

• http://www.habitsofmind.co.uk/teaching-habits.html

What Questions do you Still Have?

Thank You!